While others
bemoaned the significantly lower production, wine-maker Joao Martins da Silva,
in the prime vineyards of Camara de Lobos, stoically shrugged off his viticultural
limitations to produce a rich, sweet wine from the Malvasia Candida grape: the
Malmsey 1879 – a wine that was destined for a circuitious journey to South
Africa almost a century later.
His creation was Canteiro-aged
in 105-gallon wooden barrels for more than 60 years, bottled in 1943, since
then developing enormous concentration and complexity, and sold to wine
importer, Madeira expert and former Nederburg auctioneer Patrick Grubb. But
this wine’s journey didn’t end there.
Having being
produced in the face of adversity in a series of events with uncanny parallels
to the origin of Nederburg Edelkeur, the raison
d’etre for the Nederburg Auction, it is perhaps not unusual that this wine
eventually made its way to the Auction.
Fine wine auctioneer
Anthony Barne acquired a bottle from Grubb last year. It was now finally ready
for the next leg of its journey. This was to the 2014 Nederburg Charity Auction,
where its lineage will be helping others overcome hardship.
Barne is offering
this distinguished wine to guests of the Nederburg Auction alongside 12 other
special items on Saturday 13th September to raise funds for local
community-focused organisations.
It is perhaps
fitting that the proceeds raised from the sale of the Malmsey 1879 – which
offers an intense, complex story filled with heritage and value – should go
towards investing in the futures of the people who make up the backbone of
South Africa’s wine industry.
An equally rare,
exceptional wine that will come under the charity auctioneer’s hammer is the
Oremus Tokaji Eszencia 2000, a wine that will easily maintain its quality and
drinkability for 200 years or more. Donated by Swedish wine importer Janåke
Johansson, just a few hundred bottles of the 2000 vintage were produced, reinforcing
its status as a unique collector’s item.
Several exceptional
South African wines have been offered for the Charity Auction line-up. Head of
wine buying at Ultra Liquors Mark Norrish says of the Zonnebloem 5-litre 1979
Pinotage he donated that he was a big fan of the estate in the eighties, and
clearly, the buying public was as well. The brand sold exceptionally well
through their outlets at the time, with the result that Wynberg store manager Chris Minikin received
the donated bottle from the company’s Stellenbosch Farmers Winery (SFW)
representative as a token of thanks.
Just one bottle of the Groot
Constantia Heerenrood 1975 is on offer from the Distell Tabernakel wine
library. It was first made as the flagship of Groot Constantia by a young Neil
Ellis, and discontinued by the late Pieter du Toit after the 1989 vintage. In a recent tasting, the
1975 Groot Constantia Heerenrood still showed a lot a youth, belying its nearly
40 years of age. The wine showed a vibrant colour and fine tannins with
truffles and forest floor aromas on the nose, a good testimony that South
African red wines can age beautifully.
Nederburg cellarmaster Razvan Macici has
chosen wines as old as the Nederburg Auction itself for the Charity Auction. Twelve bottles of the 1975 Nederburg Cabernet Sauvignon,
made and signed by his legendary predecessor, Gűnter Brȍzel, who turned 80 in
April, are a fine example of longevity: of the Auction, that celebrates its
40th anniversary; of Brȍzel, who remains a mentor and source of inspiration to
the Nederburg winemaking team; and of the wines made in the Nederburg cellars. A
rare collector's item for its archival value alone, these wines will be a
thrilling experience for the buyer who wants to imbibe history.
First-time
beneficiaries The Breytenbach Centre in Wellington and the Hope Through Action
project in Paarl will benefit from the proceeds raised on Saturday, 13
September, at the close of the main auction.
All
the items to be sold through the Nederburg Charity Auction are published on the
auction website: www.nederburgauction.co.za
Note:
The complete Nederburg Charity Auction
line-up is as follows:
- A 5-litre bottle Zonnebloem 1979 Pinotage, limited edition, donated by
Mark Norrish
- A 375ml bottle Oremus Tokaji Eszencia 2000, donated by Janåke Johansson,
wine importer from Sweden
- A collection of six 750ml bottles of Faustino I Gran Reserva 1964 in a
wooden case, donated by Chris Swanepoel on
behalf of Mack
& Schühle AG
- A trio of Overgaauw Tria Corda – 1979, 1995 and 2011 vintages, donated
by the Van Velden family
- A bottle of Groot Constantia Heerenrood 1975, donated from the Distell
Tabernakel
- A Liebherr WKes653
GrandCru freestanding wine storage cabinet, donated by Liebherr-Africa (Pty)
Limited
- A 3-litre bottle Le Riche Cabernet 2003, donated by the Le Riche family
- A magnum bottle of Chateau Gruaud Larose 1975, donated by Janåke Johansson, wine
importer from Sweden
- A bottle of Lanzerac Cabernet 1957, donated by Boets Nel
- A bottle of Malmsey 1879 Vintage Madeira, donated by auctioneer Anthony
Barne MW
- A bronze sculpture entitled ‘Jumping Hare’, crafted by Guy du Toit,
donated by both Guy and Ilse Schermers of IS ART Gallery
- A collection of 12 bottles of Nederburg Vintage Cabernet 1975, donated
by current cellarmaster Razvan Macici on behalf of Nederburg
- A magnum of the 2007 Arrivo Nebbiolo ‘Lunga Macerazione’, donated by
guest speaker Peter Godden
About the beneficiaries:
The Breytenbach Centre
Based in
Wellington, the Breytenbach Centre is a multidisciplinary cultural centre for
training and engaging with visual arts, music, drama and creative writing. The
centre’s drama project – story telling through the art of puppetry – involves
drama groups from the centre visiting the youth at various schools and farms in
the Boland area, where, through a combination of puppetry and theatre, various
issues such as hygiene, peer pressure, drugs and alcohol abuse, and animal
care, are addressed. The project provides a platform for the youth to gain
access to the arts while at the same time offering life skills to help them
make responsible choices. http://www.breytenbachsentrum.co.za/
Hope Through Action
Hope Through Action is a
non-profit organisation, registered both in the UK and South Africa,
specifically created to bring about life-changing initiatives for young people
in South Africa. Sport (more recently
also arts programmes) is used as a medium, not only to develop positive life
skills, physical ability and confidence, but also to assist young people in
coping with difficult realities. Their
vision is to through the power of sport, change lives,
bring hope and to release potential. www.hopethroughaction.com